Praveen Prem and His Eight Year Long Struggle

At first sight, he strikes you as someone brimming with humor.

A talkative, roly-poly youngster with a wide, innocent smile. But underneath that layer of jollity, there lies a story of hardships.

Cinema is - and has been - his only passion. Soon after school he set out to become an actor. But, it took eight long years of struggle for him to make a mark. And when he made it, he did it with a bang.

Meet Praveen Prem, who breathed life into Harichandran, the ambitious junior singer in Sathyan Anthikad’s recent flick ‘Katha Thudarunnu.’ Though a small role, it indeed was a giant leap for Praveen’s budding career. Just like a summer shower after a prolonged drought.

Born into a lower middle class family settled in Balaramapuram in the outskirts of the city, the road to cinema was not smooth for Praveen. Soon after completing Plus Two, he decided to walk into the film industry. Except for a burning desire to act and numerous certificates he got during his school days for acting, he had nothing to boast of. Neither did he have a film background nor friends in the industry.

"Nothing worked for me initially, I was very confused. I didn’t know which way to go. In fact, I was in a dilemma whether I should become an actor, a director or a technician. But, I always loved acting. The only thing then I had in my mind was to associate with film-making somehow," says Praveen, who now lives at Karamana.

As days passed by, Praveen decided to study cinema to learn where his talents lay. "I began watching films. From the 10th edition of the IFFK, I actively participated in film festivals and voluntarily worked for the Chalachitra Academy. To meet daily expenses I worked as a marketing executive, a salesman and also worked at the State Institute of Languages," says Praveen, who made up his mind to become a technician after seeing the Tamil movie ‘Annyan.’

Praveen adds, "The movie shook my mind like anything. It instilled more confidence in me" But his attempt to join for the cinematography course at Adyar proved futile. However, he managed to do an editing course. "As soon as I completed the course, I got an opportunity to assist Mahesh Narayanan in several ad films. Soon, I came across so many persons involved in film making and became more focused," he says.

Slowly, but steadily, things started happening for him. To his luck, he got a chance to be part of the Soorya Theatre Festival. "It was the turning point for me. I acted in Soorya Krishnamoorthy sir’s drama ‘Pulari.’ During one of the shows, I met Sreebala K Menon, the assistant of Sathyan Anthikad who had turned up to watch the drama. She was impressed with my performance and I conveyed my interest in acting in films. I was asked to meet Sathyan sir. That happened in October 2009 and he just said, ‘Will let you know'," Praveen says.

It was a New Year gift- the much-awaited call from Sreebala in the first week of 2010 asking Praveen to join the shoot of Sathyan Anthikad’s new film. "I joined the film crew at Kozhikode. I was given a room and some acting tips initially. A costumer came and took measurements for my dress. In the first three days, there was no shoot. ‘Praveen, you just watch and understand things,’ I was told,'' memories started rolling out, scene by scene.

The D-day was February 1.

Praveen was given four lines of a song ‘Kizhakkumala kammalitta thankathalam / kalikkalam / olithadam / Urakkayoru mangalathin thakilthalam / Muzhakkidam perukkidam, ’ and was asked to memorize it. He roamed around the shooting site reciting these lines.

After taking blessings from KPAC Lalitha, Praveen stepped before the camera. 'Now we can see how many rolls will be wasted,' came the comment from cinematographer Venu," Praveen remembers with a chuckle.

All eyes were on the debutant. It was a close-up shot and he was asked to sing those four lines. "After a rehearsal, we went for a take. As soon as I finished singing, Sathyan sir said, ‘Ok, good!’ The first take was ok," he still has that excitement on his face.

"A small character in the film. But, for me, it was a big thing. To work with Sathyan sir, Venu, Jayaram, KPAC Lalitha and Innocent - the biggies of Malayalam film and, of course, to sing a song composed by Ilayaraja," says 25-year-old Praveen. He also dubbed for the character.

Soon, a flurry of offers came his way. "I have the confidence in doing whatever roles given to me. It’s a good beginning and I will continue putting in the same effort as earlier. And the rest lies in the hands of the Almighty," Praveen signs out.

(The New Indian Express, July 2010)